What’s the best paving choice for my garden?
Selecting hard landscaping materials isn’t easy, I regularly find myself agonising over which is the right paving for my clients garden. All options have their benefits and downsides - as always in garden design, the place to start is your site. Where are you located? What’s the style of your property and garden? Paving for a modern new build is going to be a different choice than for a traditional cottage.
Lets look at the three paving slabs you most often see:
Porcelain Paving
At the minute, porcelain is a really popular choice with my clients. Porcelain tiles have a low water absorption rate, which means they don’t absorb the dirt easily and so can be cleaned to look pretty much as good as new. This is particularly useful in a really shady spot, where natural stone can get black and discoloured relatively quickly. The colour of each porcelain slab is uniform, so in a modern scheme it works well. But there are downsides. I find that porcelain looks dirty quickly - I guess because its not porous, the dirt sits on the top and doesn’t blend with slab. The main draw back for me however is that it can look unnatural - although stone suppliers are increasingly trying to replicate the look of natural stone, the clean edges and regular colouring of porcelain misses the beauty of natural stone.
Good for: non-traditional schemes, shady areas.
2. Limestone
Limestone is a sedimentary stone, and therefore you will get natural variation within each slab and from slab to slab plus potentially interesting features like fossils. Limestone tends to be my paving stone of choice - it comes in lovely creams, buffs and greys and while there is variation, it is often quite gentle. The downside, as with all natural stone, is the fact it will weather with age and can stain.
Good for: all schemes.
3. Sandstone
Sandstone is again a natural stone, but its typically a little more porous that Limestone so will go green / black quite quickly in shady areas. Again it has all the visual benefits of natural stone and can be quite an affordable option. Do your homework on the one you are buying as many can really vary in colour from slab to slab, which could be a surprise if that’s not what you are after!
Good for: sunny areas, areas that need slip resistance
Cobbles / Setts / Clay Pavers / Pitchers
These are all smaller stone options that can be used to break up large areas of paving and add a different texture to your patio areas. They are often used in driveways, pathways and as edging stone too. You could use, for example, stone setts that match your paving slabs to create a visual break between two entertaining areas or between a patio and pathway. Try using clay pavers to create a herringbone ‘rug’ underneath your dining table. These smaller paving options can blend in with your paving stone to add a textural difference or select a different colour to make a strong contrast.
Herringbone ‘rug’ using clay pavers
Other hard landscaping options:
Paving isn’t your only option - gravel, self binding gravel, decking - I’ll cover these in my next blog.
Some things to think about:
Go and visit some suppliers to view the slabs, ask them for advice and for a stone sample you can take home. Local stone is a great option so see if there is a local supplier near you. For national suppliers, you could have a look at London Stone, Quorn Stone, Allgreen, Westminster Stone.
Take some time to check the slip rating of your paving - always make sure your tiles are suitable for outdoor use. Talk to your supplier in particular if you are using paving around a swimming pool or hot tub - a high slip rating is vital.
Don’t forget grout / pointing colour - it can make a real difference. Personally, I hate a contrasting grout colour - a natural buff stone surrounded by a dark grey or black grout colour gives me checkerboard vibes. I would always recommend a grout colour that blends with the paving.
Avoid a really light paving stone. It’s amazing how different a slab looks outside - natural outdoor light makes everything much, much brighter and a very light stone can be dazzling. Always get samples that you can take outdoors to look at.
Look at the finish on the paving you select - for example ‘sawn’ will mean it will have a smooth finish and so have a slightly more contemporary feel. Riven paving will have ridges and variations in the surface, which is great for a more traditional look.
Think about layout and sizes. Most commonly, paving stone is laid in a stretcher bond format. However, if you have a country or traditional scheme, you will probably opt for a mixed sized paving pack, where the sizes of the paving vary and are laid in a seemingly random way. If you have a very modern scheme, you might consider extra large pavers, for example. For items like clay pavers / setts etc there are lots of interesting ways to arrange them - herringbone, basket weave (think parquet flooring for inspiration)!
Mixed size limestone paving for a traditional Cotswold poperty.
